Advanced Energy Perspectives

The Public Utility Commission of Texas (PUCT) began this year by engaging stakeholders on energy efficiency. The pace was ambitious, but now progress has stalled. Through the Energy Efficiency Implementation Project (EEIP), stakeholders participated in biweekly working groups that ran from January through March culminating in a number of recommendations and best practices for the Commission. But the trail has since run cold; Now as ERCOT, Texas’ primary grid operator, issues rapid-fire notices asking Texans to voluntarily reduce their electricity use to avert a grid emergency, we are left to wonder when the Commission will take up the EEIP’s recommendations and unlock Texas’ full energy efficiency potential. 

Texas’ demand for electricity breaks records year after year as the state battles extreme weather. Although Texas accounts for about 1/7th of the nation’s total energy consumption and uses more energy than any other state, demand for electricity keeps rising. Unlike traditional power plants that require years to become operational, distributed energy resources (DERs) are a readily available tool that Texas can use to meet this significant electricity demand.